Robert Stroud - The Birdman of Alcatraz Official Bookstore Robert "the Birdman of Alcatraz" Stroud Robert Stroud, who was better known to the public as the "Birdman of Alcatraz," was probably the most famous inmate ever to reside on Alcatraz. In 1909 he brutally murdered a bartender who had allegedly failed to pay a prostitute for whom Stroud was pimping in Alaska. After shooting the bartender to death, Stroud took the man's wallet to ensure that he and the prostitute would receive compensation for her services. In 1911 Stroud was convicted of manslaughter, and he was sent to serve out his sentence at McNeil Island, a Federal penitentiary in Washington State. His record at McNeil indicates that he was violent and difficult to manage. On one occasion, Stroud viciously assaulted a hospital orderly who he insisted had reported him to the administration for attempting to procure narcotics through intimidation and threats. On another occasion he stabbed a fellow inmate. Robert Stroud following his arrival at U.S.P.

Alcatraz in December of 1942 Robert Stroud at Alcatraz in October 1951 Shortly after receiving an additional six-month sentence for his hostile actions, Stroud was transferred to Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary in Kansas, due to ceaseless complaints about his threats toward other inmates, and also because of overcrowding in the prison. In 1916, after Stroud was refused a visit with his brother, he stabbed a guard to death in front of eleven hundred inmates in the prison Mess Hall. He was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death by hanging, and he was ordered to await his death sentence in solitary confinement. His mother desperately pleaded for his life, and finally in 1920 President Woodrow Wilson commuted his death sentence to life imprisonment without parole. As a result of Stroud's unpredictable and violent outbursts, Warden T.W. Morgan directed that Stroud be permanently placed in the segregation unit, to live out his sentence in total solitude. Over the course of Stroud's thirty years of imprisonment at Leavenworth, he developed a keen interest in canaries, after finding an injured bird in the recreation yard.

Stroud was initially allowed to breed birds and maintain a lab inside two adjoining segregation cells, since it was felt that this activity would provide for productive use of his time. As a result of this privilege, Stoud was able to author two books on canaries and their diseases, having raised nearly 300 birds in his cells, carefully studying their habits and physiology, and he even developed and marketed medicines for various bird ailments. Although it is widely debated whether the remedies he developed were effective, Stroud was able to make scientific observations that would later benefit research on the canary species. However, after several years of Stroud's informal research, prison officials discovered that some of the equipment he had requested was actually being used to construct a still to make an alcoholic brew. In 1942 Stroud was transferred to Alcatraz, where he spent the next seventeen years - six years in segregation in D Block, and eleven years in the prison hospital. In 1959 he was transferred to the Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri, and there on November 21, 1963, he was found dead from natural causes by convicted spy, close friend, and fellow inmate Morton Sobell.

Stroud had never been permitted to see the movie in which Burt Lancaster portrayed him as a mild-mannered and humane individual, but "Birdman of Alcatraz" later earned Lancaster an Academy Award nomination for best actor. For a more detailed narrative on Robert Stroud please see the full-length article published on this web site, or follow the link for more information on the book Alcatraz - A Definitive History, which can be ordered directly from this site. This publication contains a comprehensive chronicle of Robert Stroud's life and imprisonment. In addition, it includes an extensive archive of rare Alcatraz related documents and photographs. Former Alcatraz Correctional Officer George DeVincenzi standing outside of Stroud's Alcatraz ward cell in 2011. George guarded Stroud and to pass time the two played checkers through the cell bars. Birdman of Alcatraz (1962) - IMDb IMDb 17 January 2017 4:34 PM, UTC NEWS There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This!

Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error A surly convicted murderer held in permanent isolation redeems himself when he becomes a renowned bird expert. Directors: From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON DISC a list of 36 titles created 04 Feb 2012 a list of 40 titles created 08 Oct 2012 a list of 45 titles created 23 Jul 2013 a list of 24 titles created 14 Oct 2013 a list of 40 titles created 04 Feb 2014 Title: Birdman of Alcatraz (1962) 7.8/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 8 nominations. See more awards » Videos A fast-talking traveling salesman with a charming, loquacious manner convinces a sincere evangelist that he can be an effective preacher for her cause.

Director: Richard Brooks In 1944, a German colonel loads a train with French art treasures to send to Germany. The Resistance must stop it without damaging the cargo. Directors: John Frankenheimer, Arthur Penn Stars: Burt Lancaster, Paul Scofield, Jeanne Moreau United States military leaders plot to overthrow the President because he supports a nuclear disarmament treaty and they fear a Soviet sneak attack. Director: John Frankenheimer A crippled circus acrobat is torn emotionally between two ambitious young trapeze artists, one a talented young American and a less-gifted but beautiful Italian. Director: Carol Reed A district attorney investigates the racially charged case of three teenagers accused of the murder of a blind Puerto Rican boy. He begins to discover that the facts in the case aren't ... See full summary » Director: John Frankenheimer In Hawaii in 1941, a private is cruelly punished for not boxing on his unit's team, while his captain's wife and second-in-command are falling in love. Director: Fred Zinnemann Edit Storyline In 1912, the notorious and violent prisoner Robert Franklin Stroud is transferred to the Leavenworth Prison convicted for murdering a man.

When a guard cancels the visit of his mother, Elizabeth Stroud, due to a violation of the internal rules, he stabs and kills the guard and goes to trial three times. He is sentenced to be executed by the gallows, but his mother appeals to President Woodrow Wilson who commutes his sentence to life imprisonment. However, the warden, Harvey Shoemaker, decides to keep Stroud in solitary for the rest of his life. One day, Stroud finds a sparrow that has fallen from the nest in the yard and he raises the bird until it is strong enough to fly. Stroud finds a motivation for his life raising and caring for birds and becomes an expert in birds. He marries Stella Johnson and together they run a business, providing medicine developed by Stroud. But a few years after, Stroud is transferred to Alcatraz and has to leave his birds behind. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil now the world will know the story of the most defiant man alive! See more » Genres: 15 September 1962 (Italy) See more » Also Known As: Der Gefangene von Alcatraz See more » Filming Locations: Did You Know?

Trivia Cinematographer John Alton was fired two weeks into production and replaced by Burnett Guffey . See more » Goofs During the 1946 escape attempt from Alcatraz, inmates are shown obtaining a revolver and a lever-action rifle from a gun gallery. The firearms kept (and subsequently stolen from the gallery) were a Colt .45 automatic pistol and a 30.06 Springfield Bolt-Action Rifle. See more » Quotes [first lines] Tour guide: ...during which you will see all of the man-made and natural beauties, the most spectacular bay in the world. You'll pass beneath the famous Golden Gate Bridge, considered by most authorities to be one of the most striking structures ever erected by man. From the bay, you will thrill to the magnificent San Francisco skyline. Your cruise ship, the Harbor King, will circle Alcatraz, a maximum security prison containing the most dangerous criminals in America. It has been the home of ... – See all my reviews "Birdman of Alcatraz" depicts a fictionalized version of the life of Robert Stroud, a real prisoner who served a life sentence in various American prisons, including Alcatraz.

As other viewers have commented, the film fictionalizes the life of the real Robert Stroud, who was a murderer and who has been accused of being a pedophile, as well. This fictionalization should not interfere with an intelligent viewer's enjoyment of a fine film. Too, this fictionalization doesn't change the key features of Stroud's case -- a bad man, a man who is shown on screen to be a real murderer, was condemned to death by the state. That much is true from Stroud's real life story, and that much is shown in the film. Stroud was a difficult person who did not treat other people decently. That much was true of the real Stroud and that is shown in the film. Stroud's mother pled for his life and President Woodrow Wilson commuted his sentence to life. A warden, aware of how difficult Stroud was to control, declared that Stroud be kept in segregation. That much is true in Stroud's real life story, and that is depicted in the film. Finally, Stroud became noteworthy for his research and writing on canaries, after he found an injured bird in the recreation yard. That much was true in Stroud's life, and that is shown in the film.

Those who argue that the film is not as accurate as it could be have a point, but the film does follow the facts outlined above. The film is quiet, and black and white, and yet riveting. It is an example of a kind of film-making that is sadly lost today. The film attempts a serious discussion of serious issues: the value of a man, the death penalty, the role of prisons, their wardens and guards, the possibility of human connection, even under conditions of relative isolation. Stroud makes some human contact with his guard, and with a fellow inmate he communicates with via tapping. The film is riveting because its entire cast has a kind of star power that is hard to find today. Even given his quiet, surly performance in this black and white film, you can't take your eyes off of Burt Lancaster. The supporting cast is equally excellent. This film is a must for anyone interested in cinematic treatments of prisons, of the death penalty, of questions of human worth, even the worth of persons who display their lack of worth in, almost, their every act, and, the kind of films of the late fifties and early sixties that provided intelligent discussions of social issues.

It's also a great movie if you just want to be entertained. 56 of 62 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes Fernando F. Croce CinePassion Frankenheimer's compelling, if slightly fictionalized biopic of Robert Stroud is extremely wel acted by Burt Lancaster and the rest of the cast, including Thelma Ritter and Telly Savalas. January 8, 2011 | Rating: B+ | Full Review… Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com This preachy bio pic is a hokey take on the birdman with Lancaster being misused on every occasion. July 16, 2007 | Rating: 1/5 Felix Vasquez Jr. Film Threat Prison biopic that's more interested in its liberal message about prison reform working for redemption than in anything else. February 12, 2007 | Rating: C+ | Full Review… Dennis Schwartz Ozus' World Movie Reviews Even with its limping screenplay and general drift toward competence rather than excellence, Birdman does pull us well enough into its fistful of compelling characters.

August 9, 2006 | Rating: C+ | Full Review… 'Birdman of Alcatraz' publishes book long after death FacebookEmail Twitter Google+ LinkedIn Pinterest 'Birdman of Alcatraz' publishes book long after death SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Birdman of Alcatraz died 50 years ago behind bars at the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners here. But Robert Stroud's voice is about to be heard. Post to Facebook 'Birdman of Alcatraz' publishes book long after death SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Birdman of Alcatraz died 50 years ago behind bars at the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners here. But Robert Stroud's voice is about to be heard. Check out this story on USATODAY.com: CancelSend A link has been sent to your friend's email address. Posted! A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. 1 To find out more about Facebook commenting please read the Conversation Guidelines and FAQs 'Birdman of Alcatraz' publishes book long after death Juliana Goodwin, Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader 1:31 p.m.

EST February 3, 2014 x Share Fifty years after his death, the manuscripts of Robert Stroud, who was known as the Birdman of Alcatraz and died at the federal prison hospital in Springfield, Mo., are being released as an e-book. The movie rights have been sold, too. Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader His Missouri lawyer fought 21 years to obtain manuscripts. Retired lawyer Dudley Martin of Springfield, Mo., represented Robert Stroud, better known as the Birdman of Alcatraz, after the inmate was prohibited from publishing his books in 1962. (Photo: Nathan Papes, Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader) Story Highlights Robert Stroud wrote the manuscripts while he was in prison at Alcatraz One was the history of the prison system through his eyes; the other was an autobiography The works are explicit in places; they also reveal his homosexuality 301 CONNECT TWEET LINKEDIN 1 COMMENTEMAILMORE SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Birdman of Alcatraz died 50 years ago behind bars at the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners here. But Robert Stroud's voice is about to be heard.

When Stroud was moved to the "Fed Med" in 1959, the well-known prisoner brought two manuscripts he had penned: Looking Outward, a book about the history of the prison system and his experience in it; and Bobbie, an autobiography. While in Alcatraz, he was forbidden to publish the books. He tried again when he was moved to Springfield and was denied once again. In 1962 — the same year a movie about his experience with birds was released to theaters — Stroud filed a lawsuit in Springfield against the Bureau of Prisons for violating his freedom of speech rights. Dudley Martin of Springfield represented Stroud at no charge. Stroud died before a decision was made in the case, and his manuscripts went into probate. The manuscripts were handwritten on legal pads available from the prison commissary. His penmanship is precise, almost delicate. The pages are weathered — some have water stains — but here Stroud's life experiences unfold. Martin spent 21 years fighting for the manuscripts before he obtained them through the court system. It took another 29 years before he released Part 1 of Looking Outward, A Voice From the Grave.

It is the first installment of a five-part e-book series. Martin, now 80, also sold the book's movie rights to St. Louis-based Coolfire Studios, which specializes in cable-TV projects. Two of its notable series include Sweetie Pies and Fast N Loud. James Cornwell, a Springfield publisher and author who worked with Martin on the project, said they were not given a timeline of when the manuscripts might be turned into a series, but they were "excited about the interest." One reason it took so long for publication: Publishers initially were afraid of being sued. "The statute of limitations has run out, and no one can complain. Oh, Grandma can holler, but she can't bring a lawsuit," Martin said. Stroud: The early years Robert Stroud was born Jan. 28, 1890. He was raised — and is buried — in Metropolis, Ill. At the turn of the 20th century, he moved to Alaska territory, where he became a pimp. When one of his prostitutes was badly beaten, Stroud killed the man who hurt her, Martin said.

(Some historical accounts say Stroud killed the man for not paying the woman.) (Photo: Courtesy of Dudley Martin) "That wasn't unusual in Alaska at that time, but there was a new judge in town and he vowed to clean up crime," Martin said. In 1909, Stroud was charged with manslaughter and sentenced to 12 years. He was 19. Initially, he served time in Washington state but then was transferred to Leavenworth, a federal penitentiary in Kansas. A historical gem that Cornwell and Martin recently discovered in Stroud's documents were Stroud's early hand-drawn maps of Leavenworth. "We didn't even know we had them. He drew these maps pretty much to scale," Cornwell said. Stroud had a third-grade education, but he was very intelligent and taught himself to read German and French. While Burt Lancaster would later portray him on film as a reformed, mild-mannered man, Stroud had serious rage issues. In 1916 while at Leavenworth, Stroud killed a prison guard in the mess hall. "He was a psychopath," Cornwell said.

"He killed a man with his bare hands in the chow hall." Stroud received a death sentence for the murder. In 1920, President Woodrow Wilson commuted the death sentence to life in prison after Stroud's mother begged that her son's life be spared. However, Stroud would live out most of his life in solitary confinement, first in Leavenworth and eventually in Alcatraz. How Martin became his lawyer At 20, Martin was in the Army and stationed in Maryland. The father of his good friend was a lawyer and took pro bono cases several times a year to help people. "That stuck with me," Martin said. “(Robert Stroud) was a psychopath. He killed a man with his bare hands in the chow hall.” James Cornwell, Springfield, Mo. When Martin returned to Springfield, he told his parents he wanted to be a newspaper man. They told him he would starve to death. So he became a lawyer, and he never forgot the importance of giving back through his work. "I defended blacks for free at a time when they were looked down upon," he said. "I took several cases a year at no charge." And that's how he met Stroud.

Martin heard that Stroud was trying to publish his manuscripts and that the prison system was fighting it. His lawyer was in California when Stroud was transferred from Alcatraz to Springfield. "I called his lawyer in California and said 'Are you licensed to practice law in Missouri?' He said 'No.' I said, 'Well, I am,' " Martin, recalled, waving his hand. "He said, 'What will you charge?' I said, 'Nothing.' " Martin met Stroud only once. "They brought him in; he was a great big, tall man. He said 'Thank you, Mr. Martin' and shook my hand. That's about all he said," Martin said. The lawyer representing the prison system asked that the book be barred from publication because it contained a lot of lewd content pertaining to sex in prisons, Martin said. "The judge said, 'There have been many important books written by people in prison. I don't know if this is important or not.' So the judge decided to keep the manuscripts in the custody of the court, read them, and then give his decision," Martin said. But Stroud died 11 months later on Nov. 21, 1963, before the judge's decision.

Stroud's belongings went into probate, and the manuscripts were sent to Jackson County in Kansas City. Martin set out to be appointed administrator of Stroud's will. He eventually was named administrator, and after more than 20 years, the manuscripts were handed over to Martin. (Photo: Nathan Papes, Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader) That was in 1984. Martin hired the same publicist used by Thomas E. Gaddis, who wrote the biography and screenplay for Birdman of Alcatraz, the film that made Stroud famous. They sent the manuscripts off to all the big publishing houses in New York. "And they all had the same response. They said 'We'd love to publish it, but we'll get sued. Stroud is the only person that can verify this, and he's dead. He said Warden so-and-so was taking bribes; Guard so-and-so was a sadist who liked to whip prisoners,' " Martin said. These people were still alive and still employed in the prison system. In addition, the book has graphic sexual content. So in 1985, Martin put the manuscripts in storage. He was disappointed.

"But more than that, I thought this information should be available to the public. They think the prison system is OK. It doesn't transform prisoners; it makes them worse," Martin said. Bobbie, an autobiography In addition to Looking Outward, Stroud wrote Bobbie, an autobiography so titled because it's the name his mother called him. "He was 23 hours a day inside, one hour outside. He wanted to feel like it was some kind of real life. I think that is why he wrote Bobbie," Cornwell said. (Photo: Nathan Papes, Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader) But if all you know about the man is Burt Lancaster's portrayal in the movie, these books will shed light on the real man, not the Hollywood version. In real life, Stroud never had birds at Alcatraz, where he was transferred in 1942. "I guess Birdman of Leavenworth didn't sound good. Alcatraz sounded better," Martin said. Stroud spent nearly 30 years in Leavenworth, studying birds for the first 15 years before being ordered to give them up, according to the History Channel.

During that time, he raised nearly 300 birds in his cells and learned about their habits and physiology, according to alcatrazhistory.com. Making strides in ornithology, he wrote the book Diseases of Canaries, published in 1933, and in 1943 published Digest of the Diseases of Birds, a 500-page text that included his own illustrations. He even developed medicines for various bird ailments that veterinarians used, Cornwell said. While he was allowed to have microscopes and equipment in Leavenworth, they eventually were taken away because guards said he used some of the equipment to brew alcohol. Stroud had a wife but said in his manuscripts that he was homosexual. That was never mentioned in Gaddis' 1955 book because it was too controversial at the time, but Stroud is open about it in his writings, Cornwell said. While stories in the books Looking Outward and Bobbie are told through Stroud's perspective, he doesn't glorify himself, said Cornwell, whom Martin approached in 2009. Cornwell's expertise is actually in cookbooks and children's books.

First, the two researched the market to see if people would be interested in Stroud's writings and then were in negotiations with Coolfire Studios on the movie rights, but the deal fell apart. They then decided to publish an e-book and Coolfire contacted them again about buying the rights, which they sold at the end of last year. "It was quite an undertaking," Martin said. "We're excited about providing access to it." Last Slide Next Slide U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners The U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Mo., has housed many famous prisoners including Joseph Bonanno of the Bonanno crime family, Vito Genovese and Vincent Gigante of the Genovese crime family, John Gotti of the Gambino crime family, race car driver Randy Lanier, drug trafficker Michael Riconosciuto, and terrorists Omar Abdel Rahman and Jose Padilla (for a short time). The prison, which opened in 1933, was originally called The U.S. Federal Medical Center for Defective Delinquents. Springfield was chosen as an ideal spot for a prison hospital because of its central location in the country, according to early newspaper accounts.

Under increasing deadline pressure, residents of Springfield, Ozark, Marshfield and elsewhere donated $142,000 to purchase a tract of land destined to house a new federal prison hospital, according to The Springfield (Mo.) Daily News in an April 1931 article. Early prisoners worked a farm situated on the grounds but farming there ceased in 1966. Today, the medical prison houses nearly 1,000 prisoners. Sources: Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader archives; Bureau of Prisons Manuscripts being archived The Missouri State Special Collections has started archiving the Robert Stroud manuscripts, which will be available in the future. The documents are still in the process of being scanned but are expected to be available at 301 CONNECT TWEET LINKEDIN 1 COMMENTEMAILMORE Read or Share this story: USA Today's Best-Selling Books List Birdman of Alcatraz | The real birdman of Alcatraz was Rober… | Flickr Amanda Green By: Amanda Green Birdman of Alcatraz The real birdman of Alcatraz was Robert Stroud who adopted his name for raising and selling birds in Leavenworth prior to being transported to Alcatraz in 1942.

Stroud was charged with murder in 1909, landing him in the Puget Sound's McNeil Island. While at McNeil, Stroud assaulted a hospital orderly and stabbed a fellow inmate. He was given an additional 6 month sentence and sent to Leavenworth. While serving time in the Kansas prison Stroud stabbed and killed a guard there and was sent to Alcatraz. While on the island Stroud wrote two manuscripts which were never published by order of a judge. He was declared psychopathic. In 1959 he was transported to the Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, MO. He died there after 54 years of incarceration. Chris Syhlman has never killed anyone nor has he been in prison. He just likes birds. Done Robert Stroud - Biography - IMDb Robert Stroud Jump to: Overview (5) | Mini Bio (1) | Trivia (9) Overview (5) The Bird Doctor of Leavenworth Height 6' 3" (1.91 m) Mini Bio (1) Robert Stroud was born on January 28, 1890 in Seattle, Washington, USA as Robert Franklin Stroud.

He died on November 21, 1963 in Springfield, Missouri, USA. Trivia (9) Initially spent 30 years at Leavenworth. Then he was transferred to Alcatraz where he spent 17 years (1942-1959) of which the first 6 years were in the "D" Block (isolation). The 'Birdman of Alcatraz' wrote a book about diseases in canaries for ornithologists, "Stroud's Digest on the Diseases of Birds" (original published in 1943), that is still widely revered today. It was during his 30 year confinement at Leavenworth that he developed his legendary interest in birds. He was never allowed to keep any birds while at Alcatraz. Because of the popularity of the biographical motion picture Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), he became one of the most famous inmates ever held at the federal prison at Alcatraz, second only to mob boss Al Capone . After the sympathetic portrayal by Burt Lancaster in the motion picture Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), members of the public wrote letters asking that Stroud be released.

The real Robert Stroud was not a model prisoner. Although highly intelligent, he was regarded as a difficult, scheming, violent sociopath. He killed two additional people while in prison. It is believed that he may have actually been a psychopath. He was transfered to the federal prison at Alcatraz where he spent the first year in isolation. Had Bright's Disease. Discovered three then-unknown forms of septic fever that were killing his canaries, and developed an antidote which was sold as "Stroud's Specific Bird Cures." Sentenced to death in 1916 for killing Leavenworth prison guard Andrew Turner in a dining hall with a homemade knife after Turner had reported him for breach of silence. President Woodrow Wilson commuted the sentence to life after Stroud's mother pleaded with him to spare her son's life.

Accumulated fragments: Bird Man: From Juneau to jailhouse | Juneau Empire - Alaska's Capital City Online Newspaper Posted August 12, 2012 12:04 am - Updated August 17, 2012 08:51 am By Jack Marshall Accumulated fragments: Bird Man: From Juneau to jailhouse I generally don’t find criminals, even historical criminals, very exciting; however, Juneau does have at least one interesting criminal who, after he left Juneau, became one of the most famous federal prisoners in the United States. His name was Robert Franklin Stroud. Not a name you hear bandied about unless you know that he was also known as the “Birdman of Alcatraz”. Stroud was born in Seattle, Wash. in 1890 to Elizabeth Stroud. His father was Elizabeth’s second husband. Both of her husbands were wife beaters and his father not only beat his wife but also beat the children. He had two older sisters from the previous marriage and one younger brother. No one in the family was exempt from the beatings. Elizabeth tried to protect the children but to no avail.

Robert became the focus of many of his father’s beatings, sometimes even being threatened with death. As the boy grew older he became obsessed with hatred concerning the beatings. Stroud did not do well in school. He was tall, thin, and he was left-handed, which branded him as an abnormal child. He sat apart from the other children and refused to raise his hand or be a part of the class. When his teachers complained, his father would beat him. Finally, in the third grade Stroud stopped going to school all together. In 1900 his father left to find gold in the Klondike gold fields. A couple years later he returned and took up where he left off. Stroud decided he’d had enough and at age 13 ran away to become a hobo, riding the steel rods slung below freight trains. He returned at 16 and went to work installing electrical fixtures. Stroud heard about Alaska from friends in 1908 and at age 18 signed on with a section gang headed for Katalla to build a railroad. After a storm washed out a breakwater and halted work, he moved on to Cordova to help build a bridge.

Much of his free time was spent in the 26 saloons lining Cordova’s short main street. Stroud came down with a case of Pneumonia and a dance-hall girl and prostitute named Kitty O’Brien (Kate Delaney) nursed him back to health. Kitty was an extremely beautiful woman and Stroud fell passionately in love with her. It wasn’t long until the two of them moved in together. In order to make additional money, Robert started selling popcorn from the back of a wagon. One of his customers was a man called Charlie Dahmer, a bartender, who he had met briefly in Katalla. It turned out Charlie had previously been Kitty’s lover, but he was headed for Juneau to tend bar at the Montana. As winter set in, the popcorn trade tapered off and work on the bridge had stopped, so Stroud sold the business and he and Kitty boarded a boat for Juneau. After finding a room for them both in the old Clarke building, he began looking for work. Juneau was filled with stranded miners, many of whom gambled and drank. Fights and shootouts happened nightly. That and sickness sent many to Juneau’s cemetery.

But, the bars and dance halls were a thriving business and Kitty got a job right away at a cabaret. Stroud grew morose and hung out with others living on borrowed cash and small hope. It wasn’t long until he ran into Dahmer, still bartending at the Montana bar. On Jan. 18, 1909 Dahmer and Nels (Charlie’s roommate) had invited Stroud and Kitty to a party at Dahmer’s place. Dahmer had borrowed a large quantity of beer from the bar and early in the evening Stroud went down to the Juneau dock for a sack of fish to add to Dahmer’s table. When he returned he found Dahmer’s place empty and the room in disarray. Stroud ran back to his room to find Kitty lying on the bed severely beaten, with a red line that circled her neck where a gold chain and locket had been torn off. Kitty told him that Dahmer had said that he would keep the locket until she agreed to come back and live with him. Stroud poured her a large glass of whiskey.

Kitty sipped it and mumbled angrily, Kill the beast, kill him, kill him.” Stroud opened a drawer and pulled out Kitty’s old .38 single action revolver. He flipped open the barrel and saw the gun was empty, then rummaged through the drawer looking for bullets. There were none. “No,” Kitty cried from the bed. “I didn’t mean it — no, don’t go back there. He’ll kill you!”4 Later, after Kitty went to sleep, Stroud took the gun with him, stopped at the Jorgensen store and purchased ammunition, then headed for Dahmer’s. When Dahmer returned home he found Stroud waiting for him. Stroud asked him if he beat Kitty and Dahmer denied it but rushed at Stroud, hoping to catch him by surprise. Two shots rang out in, the second killing Dahmer. Later Stroud walked into the U.S Marshal’s office and announced that he had shot a man. Stroud told Marshal Herbert Faulkner that he and Dahmer had argued over money, omitting any mention of Kitty’s beating.

That omission led many in Juneau to speculate that Stroud had been Kitty’s pimp and that Dahmer had tried to short-change him, leading to the fatal argument. At first Kitty told the marshal she had urged Stroud to kill Dahmer, then recanted and claimed she had been distraught and didn’t know what she was saying. Faulkner arrested her as well, charging both with first-degree murder.1 When U.S. Deputy Marshall Herbert Faulkner jailed Robert Stroud and Kitty for first degree murder it was just 48 hours before the inauguration of President Taft and, except for his appearances at trials, was the last time Stroud was out of jail. (Many Juneauites may recognize the name Herbert Faulkner as the man who started the Faulkner Banfield Law offices that remain as a well known law office to this day.) Stroud’s mother heard about her son’s trouble and came to his aid by traveling from Seattle to Juneau and hiring an attorney. The attorney was the distinguished T. R. Lyons. Stroud told the attorney their first priority was freeing Kitty, as he strongly believed her innocent. His mother was extremely unhappy with his decision but could not change his mind.

Shortly after both defendants entered not guilty pleas and the case had been set for trial; Lyons received an appointment to a Federal judgeship. A new attorney was quickly hired and he believed the prosecution might accept a plea of guilty to manslaughter, thus eliminating Robert’s trial and making a separate trial for Kitty very difficult to hold. The defense attorney knew that manslaughter rarely drew more than three years and to a determined Stroud, two or three years was worth it for Kitty. Because of the amount of news coverage in Juneau, a change of venue was requested and the case was set for disposition in Skagway. The prosecution did not object to the idea of a guilty plea to a lesser offense, as long as it was acceptable to the judge, as it would have been a difficult case to try. Unfortunately, a new Federal Judge had been appointed and had just arrived from the states. Stroud was his first case and he was determined to crack down on violence in Alaska. Judge E. E. Cushman accepted Stroud’s plea of guilty of manslaughter and Kitty’s case was dropped for lack of evidence and she was freed. So, on Aug.

23, 1909 the new judge sentenced Stroud to the statutory limit of 12 years in the penitentiary at McNeil Island. The sentence opened two careers, that of a Federal judge whose stern sentences became legend, and that of a prisoner whose unbroken resistance formed a life without parallel in world prison history.4 What followed is a long story stretching to Nov. 21, 1963. As the rest of this story really doesn’t impact Juneau or Southeast Alaska, I will cover the events minimally. There are several books on Stroud and a movie called “The Birdman of Alcatraz” for which Burt Lancaster was nominated for an Academy Award, for those who want more detail. In 1912, during a fight, Stroud drove a paring knife into a fellow prisoner and gained another half year to his sentence. Not long after that, he was transferred to Leavenworth. Shortly thereafter, Stroud found the prison Library and began a lifetime of study. It turned out he was extremely intelligent and soaked up knowledge like a sponge. Poor prison food and long hours of study began to affect his health. In 1915 he was diagnosed with kidney disease.

Early in 1916 Stroud was notified that his younger brother Marc was going to travel from Juneau to Leavenworth, Kansas to visit. When Marc arrived it was a Saturday and he was denied access due to Leavenworth’s policy against Saturday visits. Because of some very minor infringement thought to be made up by a guard who liked to create unhappiness in the prisoners, Robert was again denied the privilege of visiting with his brother the following day. That evening at dinner Stroud killed the guard. Marc wrote his mother and, upon hearing this, Elizabeth sold her rooming house in Juneau, moved to Kansas City and hired an attorney to represent Robert. A federal judge found Stroud guilty and sentenced him to be hanged on July 21. The lawyer appealed and the trial was nullified. A second trial came to a verdict of guilty but only a life sentence. Again the trial was thrown out and a third trial was held, in which Stroud again was found guilty and sentenced to die.

This created a large public uproar and the Leavenworth warden was quoted as saying, “If Stroud is not hung, this murderer of a guard would spend his life in solitary.” Stroud’s defense lawyers appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1920 the Supreme Court upheld Stroud’s death sentence. Stroud’s mother appealed to President Woodrow Wilson and later to first lady Edith Bolling Wilson. Finally the first lady took Mrs. Stroud’s papers to the president. She returned with the ailing Woodrow Wilson’s scrawl across the executive order, “Commuted to life. W.W.” Within hours the warden visited Stroud to inform him that his sentence was commuted and that all his privileges were thereby revoked. The warden told the press that Stroud would remain in solitary confinement for the rest of his life.1 It was not long after the third sentencing that Stroud found three small sparrow chicks, along with their nest, that had been blown into his exercise yard. Stroud began feeding and caring for the three tiny birds. He contacted the prison library and got all the books on birds they had.

As time went on he was able to breed birds and develop a lab, since it was felt that this activity would provide for productive use of his time. As a result of this privilege, Stroud was able to author two books; one called “Diseases of Canaries” and the other “Stroud’s Digest on the Diseases of Birds.” Along with that he developed a medicine that he sold via mail order called “Stroud’s Specific.” By 1940 he had become world famous as an expert on birds and bird diseases. By that time he had been in prison thirty-one years and was 50 years old. By 1942 Stroud was still commercially breeding canaries, still ordering large quantities of seed, research materials and medicines, still complaining about vague illnesses and receiving and writing large quantities of letters. War would change that. Leavenworth no longer had the man power to service him. Administrators quietly asked Washington to transfer him to a “small institution” for closer supervision. There was only one small institution.1 On Dec. 16, 1942 Stroud was transferred by train to Alcatraz.

After a shower he was given a new set of clothes and a new number, AZ 594. Although Stroud came to the prison with the nick name “the Canary Prisoner,” he never again was involved with birds or with writing about birds. The name “Birdman of Alcatraz” was given to him by Thomas E. Gaddis when, in 1955, he published the story of Stroud. Later, in 1962, a movie by the same name was produced and the Birdman of Alcatraz was locked in the public’s memory. Stroud wrote a third book called “The History of Federal Penitentiaries.” It was never published. Some believe the book told a truth the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons didn’t want the public to know. Whatever the case, Stroud remained in solitary confinement in Alcatraz almost the entire 17 years he stayed there. In 1959 just after his 70th birthday, he was allowed to use the Alcatraz yard for exercise. Later, he was transferred to a federal prison medical facility in Springfield, Mo. Stroud’s health continued to decline and on Nov.

21, 1963 his friend and convicted spy, Morton Sobell, found him dead. Stroud was imprisoned a total of 54 years. Do not get the idea from what I wrote above that I have any sympathy for Stroud. It is my belief that there is never any excuse for murder. On the other hand, the prison system then and now is broken and needs replacement. The United States has more people in jail than any other country in the world and the recidivism rate is extremely high. The system, along with the native reservation system, is similar in that they both exist under the same basic idea: out of sight, out of mind. Neither is a good way to treat human beings, but when big money and big government are involved changes come slowly at best. Bibliography The real 'Birdman of Alcatraz'. ⋆ Historian Alan Royle The real ‘Birdman of Alcatraz’.

Posted on August 8, 2015 by Alan Royle in Movies // 4 Comments One of the many movies I look at in Movies Based On True Stories (2015), is the 1962 biopic, Birdman of Alcatraz, starring Burt Lancaster as the ‘birdman’ Robert Stroud. As a sample of what you can expect to find in this, my second book, I thought I might post some facts here for your perusal. The real story is such a far cry from the one depicted in the United Artists film that it beggars belief, but that’s the movies for you I guess. Lancaster does a reasonable acting job, given the phony script, but it is not one of his best films in my opinion. In fact, except for three terrific movies, Sweet Smell of Success (1957), From Here to Eternity (1953), and the grossly under-rated Ulzana’s Raid (1972), I usually found him annoying. His nickname in the industry was ‘Teeth’, an apt description if there ever was one. But the public in general loved him, so what do I know?

Robert Stroud in the 1920s In later years As for the subject of Birdman of Alcatraz, Robert Stroud was one nasty son of a bitch, nothing like the caring, patient, pseudo-scientist depicted by Burt in the picture. Mr. Stroud was a psychopath and, like all psychopaths, he remained one all his life. In 1909, during a robbery, he callously shot a man dead as the poor guy cowered on the floor. He never demonstrated remorse for this. In fact, he was completely without conscience. Always was. Sentenced to 12 years on McNeil Island, he promptly stabbed another prisoner in the back and was packed off to Leavenworth Penitentiary. One lunch-time there, in front of 1,100 prisoners, he stabbed a prison officer to death. Why? Because the man had been responsible for getting a visit from Stroud’s brother cancelled. In the movie, the visit was to be from his mother, not brother, but that is just wrong. It was 1916, and Stroud was quickly sentenced to death.

However, President Woodrow Wilson commuted his sentence to ‘life in solitary confinement’ at Leavenworth. President Woodrow Wilson One day in 1920, Stroud found a nest of sparrows in the prison yard and raised them. This led to him buying and selling canaries through magazine ads, all permitted by a reformist warden at the prison. Leavenworth was built to house about 1,100 prisoners, but the Great Depression saw its numbers reach three times that figure by 1938. Prisoners were actually sleeping in the aisles, yet Stroud was given two cells, one for him and one for his birds which now numbered over 300. A hole was even punched through the wall to allow him movement between the two rooms. He had published a book in 1933, called Diseases of Canaries, which was smuggled out of Leavenworth and sold en masse. Stroud was not a trained pathologist. He knew nothing about, for instance, the difference between bacterial and viral disease. His book was about bird care. In short, he was a kind of ornithologist. Suddenly, however, he had become a bit of a celebrity.

Rather than risk any adverse publicity regarding its treatment of prisoners, the prison hierarchy pretty much bowed to his requirements, especially if he told them he needed something for his birds. Already the owner of a huge ego, as well as a short temper, Stroud took advantage of his situation and became even more irascible than he already was. When he was caught making alcohol with some of the equipment in his cell, however, he was transferred to the Rock in 1942. Stroud’s original book Cashing in What many people probably do not know is that he went to Alcatraz minus his canaries. There he would remain for the next 17 years. And not a bird in sight. The Birdman of Alcatraz was, in fact, the Birdman of Leavenworth. Housed in D Block, he was chiefly responsible for a riot (the ‘Battle of Alcatraz’) in 1946. In the movie it is Stroud who tosses out the guns, thus ending the battle. In reality, the guns were later found on the bodies of two dead rioters. In 1948 he instigated a food riot, which got him removed to the prison hospital.

He would spend the next 11 years there, the only prisoner in the entire section. ‘The Rock’ in San Francisco Bay In 1950, a writer named Thomas Gaddis wrote a book about him, one that was turned into a successful motion picture in 1962. The film was romantic nonsense from beginning to end, but the movie-going public lapped it up. Stroud was depicted as a caring, patient man, a pseudo-scientist devoted to finding cures for bird diseases in spite of the indifference of the authorities. Thousands of people signed petitions demanding his early release, but the authorities weren’t buying it. They knew the man better than anyone. If confirmation of their analysis was needed, it came from Stroud himself. At 71 years of age, he was asked why he would like to be released from prison. His response was typical of the man. He said he wanted, above all else, ‘to kill a number of individuals on his list and had so short a time to do it.’ Once a psychopath always a psychopath it would seem. What the public really wanted, of course, was to see Burt Lancaster released, not Robert Stroud.

As often happens with movies, reality and fantasy become confused for some folks. Burt as Stroud In 1959 Stroud was transferred again, this time to the medical prison at Springfield, Missouri. And it was there that he passed away from heart failure on November 21, 1963, the day before President John F Kennedy was blown away in Dallas. Stroud had spent a staggering 54 years in prison, 42 of them in solitary confinement. He told Lancaster, when they met in February 1963, that he had been isolated all those years because he was an ‘admitted homosexual’. Guards claimed he was also ‘predatory and dangerous’. Homosexual or not, he had managed to get himself married whilst inside. Della Mae Jones was his wife and (most importantly for him) his business manager. His Alcatraz home today Stroud went into prison three years before the Titanic sank, and died there a year after the Cuban Missile Crisis very nearly polished off the lot of us. An awful lot of history had taken place in between. The world had changed unimaginably, yet he could only read about it in the newspapers.

He might just as well have been on another planet for those 54 years. The New York Times published the man’s obituary, but his death went more or less un-noticed. The world was still reeling from the assassination of JFK. Since then, Stroud’s ‘achievements’ in the field of ornithology and pathology have been re-assessed and rightly down-graded. If not for Burt Lancaster and United Artists, it is doubtful anyone would even have heard of The Birdman of Alcatraz. Or should we call him The Birdman of Leavenworth?

Question: What was the real name of 'The Birdman of Alcatraz'?
Answer: ROBERT STROUD